
Whether you’re cuddled up indoors for cuffing season, bundled up with your bestie or planning a binge-watching marathon for one, you’re gonna need some new material to watch on Netflix. Vv Magazine has you cover with 20 shows worth the eye-strain.
In the epic words of Game of Thrones, winter is coming. Actually, scratch that. Winter is here. And while you can’t stream that epic HBO show on Netflix, there are a whole bunch of brilliant shows you can binge-watch under the covers this hibernation season.
Here are 20 of the best options you can start watching right now.
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Gilmore Girls
Yes, A Year In The Life was just released and everyone is raving about it with good reason, but if it’s been a decade since you said goodbye to Rory Gilmore, you might want to go back and rewatch the original series first. Or you know, if you’re really in a hurry to find out what those epic final four words are, at least catch up on the last season.
Black Mirror
Easily one of the most sensational ideas ever brought to the small screen, Black Mirror tells a different story every episode, with the one connecting thread being how technology currently is – and potentially could – affect our future. It is dystopian, exciting, and more like a series of short films than a television show. The Netflix renewal of the BBC sleeper hit was much needed, and it’s incredible to watch what they are able to do now with a bigger budget and a wider audience.
The Mindy Project
When Fox canceled my beloved Mindy Project I didn’t know what I would do without her particularly sharp self-deprecating humor, but thankfully, Hulu picked it up, and right now you can catch the first four seasons on Netflix all winter long.
American Crime
While it might be easy to confuse this series with Ryan Murphy’s O.J Simpson trial recreation sensation American Crime Story, American Crime hit the airwaves first. Set up in a similar fashion, with the same actors playing different parts and telling a different story every season, this one instead tells a fictional story based around a new relevant crime blowing up our newsfeeds this year. The show has a 96% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, so if you haven’t been watching yet, get to it before season three hits ABC in 2017.
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Grace and Frankie
This Netflix original about two women in their 70s whose husbands leave them for each other now that gay marriage is legal stars a dream team cast of Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Martin Sheen and Sam Waterston in one of the funniest, most heartwarming comedies currently being produced. Also, it was about damn time someone made a show about people in their 70s still living happy, interesting lives.
Luther
While it’s safe to say The Wire put Idris Elba on the map, it’s Luther that put him on the radar of the movie execs who transitioned him from TV to film star. The short BBC crime drama about DCI John Luther came back for a surprise fourth season last year, and for all we know another one could be in the works.
Real Life Wife Swap
Like, Wife Swap, but kinkier. If you’re interested in other people’s daring sex lives, you’ll want to take a peek at this 3-episode series that follows real-life suburban couples who swing.
Love
Season one of this adorable, funny, realistic take on relationships and dating is available now, and the Netflix original is slated to have a season two coming in early 2017. Might be hard to watch if you’ve recently broken up with someone, but if enough time has passed, it might be just what you need.
The Killing
While shows focused around solving one murder per season (instead of the longtime default of per episode, thanks to the procedural format of shows like Criminal Minds and Law & Order) are common now, The Killing was the first to really break away from the quick solve and tell a story about solving a case in real time. Watch the entire series on Netflix this winter, and thank me later.
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Master Of None
Aziz Ansari and Alan Yang won an Emmy for Best TV Comedy Writing for the second episode of the series (entitled “Parents,” about their parents), making them the first Indian and Asian Americans to ever win the award. The second season is slated for a 2017 release, so now’s the time to catch up on the hijinks of Ansari’s New York City struggling actor in this relevant, smart, hilarious show.
Brooklyn 99
Another comedy to curl up with is Brooklyn 99 which stars Andy Samberg, Terry Crews, Chelsea Peretti and the hilarious, Joe Lo Truglio, to name a few. The show has won two Emmy awards and two Golden Globe awards. Plus there are 3 seasons on Netflix which are sure to last you at least two binge-watching weekends.
The Fall
This incredible series that shot Jamie Dornan to (50 Shades Of Grey) stardom just wrapped up its final season, so you can binge the entire thing all at once. Watch Gillian Anderson chase down a sadistic rapist and murderer in one of her best roles yet.
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Stranger Things
If you didn’t binge watch this one during our long hot summer like everyone else, now is as good a time as ever to get caught up in the Upside Down with Eleven and the boys.
No Tomorrow
If cheesy rom-coms are your thing, you’ll definitely want to watch No Tomorrow. The Netflix Original, which will see its first season wrap up mid-January, centers around a play-it-safe kind of gal who falls head over heels with her neighbour who just happens to think the world is going to end in 8 months. Opposites attract and the two go on whacky bucket list adventures, overcome obstacles, and of course, fall in love.
Planet Earth
Because learning about the earth and animals is cool, especially when narrated by David Attenborough. Oh, and the graphics are mind blowing. ‘Nuf said.
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Community
While Community’s first season aired around 8 years ago, it’s still just as funny as it was back then. The show follows a group of friends who meet at Greendale Community College and form a study group to tackle classes, unqualified staff, and everything else that’s thrown their way. The show has an 86% rating on Rotton Tomatoes, 4 seasons on Netflix, and another 2 seasons you’ll have to find elsewhere but it’s definitely worth the watch.
Jane the Virgin
If you love romance, comedy, and drama, then you’ll love Jane the Virgin, a modern day telenovela. Jane is a student working at a waitress at a swanky hotel when she is accidently artificially inseminated by her gynecologist. Major plot twist: the soon-to-be-baby belongs to the owner of the hotel’s son and was meant for his wife. Jane, who is, if you haven’t guessed yet, a virgin, goes on a quest, is torn between lovers, meets her real father and there are a few murders along the way.
The OA
The latest Netflix Original Series to take the world by storm is The OA. The science-fiction series centers around a blind young woman named Prairie Johnson who goes missing. Seven years later, Johnson resurfaces with her full eyesight and a new name, “The OA”.
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Narcos
Wait, you haven’t watched Narcos yet? What are you waiting for?! The series takes on the infamous Medellín drug cartel, headed by Pablo Escobar. There are currently two seasons available to watch online, with a third season premiering later this year. Full disclosure: about half of the show is Spanish-to-English subtitles, so you’ll want to pay extra attention.
Sense8
Another must-watch Netflix Original Series, if you ask us. Eight strangers around the globe who suddenly become mentally and emotionally connected, making them the target of a dangerous organization that is on the hunt for them with the intent of destroying them.
RELATED LINK: What to Do in Toronto this Month: January 2017
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What other Netflix shows should we watch? Share your suggestions with Vv Magazine in the comments below or tweet us @ViewtheVibe.